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How we test

Overall score includes:

Performance (60 percent)

Ease of use (40 percent)

Performance – assesses the write and read speeds while transferring a large set of data and a small set of data to and from each NAS system. We time the transfer while recording the speeds to measure the drive’s performance.

Ease of use – we compare the ease of use of each NAS system, assess the supplied software, setup time and complexity, how easy the interface is to use and the ease of completing common tasks, such as transferring files or backing up a device to the NAS. Our ease of use test includes an assessment of the cloud access. We look at how easy it is to access the “personal cloud” these drives become when connected to home WiFi.

As a NAS system is designed to run constantly, so you can always access your files, we also measure energy consumption. This gives you an idea how much a system will cost you in the long run. We calculate the annual cost based on average use being 8 hours’ active use and 16 hours’ standby per day with electricity costing 25¢ per kilowatt per hour.